Sooner better than Later
by Dyslexic CSI
Summary: Kate has issues with a boyfriend and Gibbs helps her sort them out. Oneshot. Kate/Gibbs


Disclaimer: Still checking my bank balance to see if I can afford these people and the show but not quite there yet.

A/N: they not very much in character but just go with it for now. Hope you guys enjoy.

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The skies outside were turning dark and grey. The dry brown leaves rustled in the howling wind. Suddenly the wind picked up and there was more rustling of leaved and dust flying around. The weather was just getting gloomier with no sign of letting up.

Inside the office the day was just starting. It had been a hectic week for all the agents. They had all been under pressure of different sorts. Some of it had been work related and at other times it was personal. Sometimes it was just the fact that you could not mix personal with professional. It just did not work.

The first agents to enter the office were Special Agent Tony DiNozzo and Tim McGee. Tony was a senior field agent and had been working there for at least 3 years now. He loped in casually and sat down in the chair at his desk. There was a huge amount of papers atop his desk. He knew that if he was to go out on the date tonight he would have to finish all the reports on his desk by then.

McGee was a junior agent and usually taken advantage on by Tony. McGee was nothing like Tony in thought but even he did not want to spend another Friday night at work. They had worked almost every weekend for months now and he did have to work it then he would not be there.

The lift door chimed open and out stepped the boss of the team. He was tall, silver haired and extremely good looking. He walked in as usual with no greeting and a cup of really strong coffee in is right hand. His hair was disheveled and it looked like he hadn't slept in days. His deep blue eyes focused on nothing in particular. Gibbs looked around and saw that Tony and McGee were already there. Kate was still not in. That was very unusual.

Kate was the only female agent on his team and he was very protective of her. She was used to looking after herself and he knew it but his conscience did not allow him to not be protective of her. He was a little too over protective and he knew it. He knew that there was something about her that drew him to her.

He waited a few more minutes for her to arrive. Just one look at her and he would be satisfied. That was all he needed. When after 20 minutes she still did not arrive he started to worry. She was not late usually and if she was going to be late she would give someone at the office a call. This was very unlike her. He called her cell phone but she did not answer. Now he was starting to panic.

Kate sat on the cold hard bench in the park. Her face was streaked with tears and her nose was runny. It had been a messy night. The guy that she was dating had asked her to marry him and she had declined saying that she was not ready. The guy had taken the rejection badly and a war of words followed with him accusing her of being in love with some one else. At that statement she had walked out of his apartment and drove home in tears. She was still upset about it this morning and was debating on whether to tell anyone a t work or not, or even if she should go to work. She stood up and pulled her coat tighter as though not to let anyone in and realised that she had to face reality sooner or later. She decided that sooner was better.

Half an hour later she walked into the office and straight to her desk. She did not want anyone to see her or stop to talk to her. A feeling of relief flowed through Gibbs when he saw her although he did not know why. He saw her tear stricken face when she looked up at him for a split second and decided to question her about it later. He wanted to bash up the person that did this to her.

They all continued their work in silence with Tony making the odd joke now and then. That still did not get Kate's mind off what that guy had said last night. She could not possibly be in love with someone else. She looked at Tony sitting and messing around at his desk and knew that it was not him. McGee was way too young for her. She turned her head and saw Gibbs. No, she thought to herself he was her boss and he was way too old for her. Besides he was not someone that anyone could easily fall in love with.

The day wore on without anyone saying much. The paperwork just never seemed to end. By the time they knew it the time was already 8 o clock. Eventually it seemed to get the better of Tony and McGee and they packed up and left. Gibbs and Kate were the only ones left in the office.

They worked quietly in each other's company. She felt free for once in the whole day. She felt like she could let her guard down. There was no body here that would hurt her or accuse her of anything. She was free.

Gibbs turned his chair and the monitor on his desk to face her. He pretended that he was working but he sat and looked at her. He never noticed how pretty she was before, how the light made her skin glow like she was an angel sent straight to him from heaven, how her hair fell beside her face when she ran her fingers through it. It took him all his strength to not walk up to her, sweep her up into his arms and kiss her until he thought he could kiss her no more.

He was brought out of his daydream very quickly when she walked up to his desk and stood there blocking the light that was streaming onto his desk. She was saying something but all he saw were her lips moving. Finally her voice registered in his brain. He saw that she had completed all her reports and had scooped up all her things and was ready to leave.

He did not want to let her go but he did not have an excuse to make her stay. He had to find one really quickly. His mind was blank. She walked to the elevator and stepped inside the open doors. Just as it as about to close he stood up and shouted out for her to wait up for him.

He caught up with her and as soon as the doors closed in front of them he became very self conscious. He was really trying to keep his senses and fight the urge to be with her. The air was getting stuffy and he was losing control. Her scent was making him drowsy… he closed his eyes to block her out but all he could picture was her in his arms. He needed to get away from her very quickly. Maybe, he thought to himself, this was a really bad idea.

Kate could feel the air burning with tension. She did not know where it was coming from. She turned around to look at Gibbs to check that he was feeling the same thing. What she saw surprised her. He was standing in the corner of the elevator, hands wringing nervously and a painful look in his deep blue eyes.

After what seemed like eternity the elevator came to a halt on the ground floor. The doors opened and he felt a relief when the cold air came whooshing in. He rushed past her in a feeble attempt to get away but he could only manage to get just outside the building before he realized that it was bitingly cold outside and he had no coat. He would have to go back inside, past her and get his jacket or he could risk getting the flu and just walking towards his car.

He started walking towards his car when Kate caught up with him in the parking looking confused. She just walked next to him not saying anything. They walked together in silence each consumed with their own thoughts. They reached her car first and when she made no attempt to get in he asked her

"Something on your mind Kate?" She did not respond at first but as she turned to face him he saw a tear roll down her perfect cheek. "Walk with me" She did without hesitation. She needed to talk to someone but she was not sure if he would understand. However she obeyed him. They walked in silence until they came to a park which was deserted only the people taking smoke breaks standing in huddled groups to keep out the cold.

He led her to a bench and sat down, she following his every movement. He held her hands in his and she felt at ease at once. He turned to face her and said "want to talk about it?' She shook her head to say no but found herself blurting out the events of the previous night from the proposal to the accusations. All the while tears running down her cheeks. Now he really wanted to kill the bastard that made her cry. He listened without saying a word gently squeezing her hand at regular intervals just to reassure her.

He did not know what to do. He was not the type to console people. He was not into all this mushy stuff that was left for weaker people, yet here he was with the woman of his dreams and not a clue of how to make her feel better. So he took the plunge and did what he thought was the most natural thing to do. He let go of her hand and embraced her with both hands. She fit in his arms perfectly. His world was spinning and he did not want to let her go.

He felt all the tension and energy drain out of her and she had stopped crying. He stood up slowly with her still in his arms. There was music coming from some where and he started swaying to it, she just following him. They danced and danced like that for a little while each not wanting to let go. She was holding onto him afraid that if she moved her arms it would break the spell and this moment would end. She did not want it to end. It felt so perfect, like this was how it was meant to be since the beginning.

The wind started howling again and had become fierce. They still had to walk all the way back to the cars. Unwillingly he let go of her and turned to walk to the car. He waited for her to gather up her things and thy walked back in silence. By the time they got to the parking lot Gibbs was cold and quieter than usual. The weather was really bad now and the drive home was going to a long awful one for both of them. Kate started up her car and pulled out of the parking lot slowly Gibbs tailing her.

Half an hour later they were outside Kate's house. He had followed her just to make sure that she reached home safely. She parked her car in the driveway and walked up to the door. As she was entering her house Gibbs realized that he still had her scarf that she had loaned him for the walk form the park to the car park. He debated on whether he should return it now or at work on Monday. That was two whole days away. He could not stay away that long. It would be pure torture.

He stepped out of the car and walked up her pathway. He reached the door and was just about to knock when it swung opened. He saw her standing in the doorway looking as gorgeous as ever. His heart skipped a beat and he blushed like a teenager. He hadn't felt like this since he was a kid. He held out the scarf for her which she took. The sun was out at an odd time now and it showed the snowflakes that had got trapped in his hair. It was the first flakes of winter…

She raised her hand to remove them and at the same time he bent down slightly to catch the scarf that was falling out of her hand. His lips brushed hers and she felt her stomach do a double flip. This was way out of her rule book. She liked the feel of his lips on hers. So moved closer to him to this time intentionally brushed her lips against his.

He made no move to retreat so she deepened the kiss until they were so wrapped up in each other that nothing else mattered. The scarf dropped to the floor anyway and the snowflakes were forgotten. This was the best feeling they both had in years. They did not want it to end. Kissing Gibbs wad the best thing she had done in a long time and she thought to herself that maybe the ex was right. Maybe she was in love with someone else she just did not realize it at the time, and with that thought she broke the kiss and smiled at Gibbs and then sent him home.

She had finally dealt with it and she thought sooner better that later and yes sooner was definitely better than later and she wouldn't trade today for any other day in her life.

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Hope it lived up to expectations. If not let me know and I'll stop writing… thanks. Don't forget to leave your thoughts.


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